Vincent this is a wonderful shot. Wow, did you ever capture these fireworks beautifully. I am totally impressed.

25 Jul 2008 6:26am

@Marion: Thank you very much Marion, but it really isn't that hard.
First, a good, sturdy tripod. Set you camera in manual everything (including focus, set to infinity). Dial in f/11~ f/16 at 200 ISO (well, that's base ISO in most Nikon) and time on 'Bulb'. I would say that a cable remote is the key element to get real good sharpness.
When fireworks begin, trip the shutter for several seconds (I myself count in my head up to 10 or 15 seconds max, but around 5 or 7 secs may be enough.)
I do not look in the viewfinder at all, I look at the fireworks directly and try to imagine the motion while the exposure is made, then I release the shutter. Take reference point where your frame is, so you know where the things place themselves in the frame.
Do it over and over again. A very quick look at the monitor to insure a somewhat tight frame, but I don't go crazy about it. You can crop later. Just don't be super wide else you loose too much definition.
My ratio is around 1 very good shot for every 50 to 100 capture, very approximatly.
If you can, give it a try, it's fun!

Beautiful capture of the fireworks with the city in the background ... I'm particularly impressed that you were able to shoot at 28 mm. I've had a similar success rate - 1 very good shot for every 50 to 100 captures.

25 Jul 2008 8:50pm

@Ron: Thank you Ron. Well, these are Major League Fireworks, if you know what I mean... huge bomb blasting all across the sky. I'm also not very far away from it, so I don't need a long lens. Thanks for stopping by.

great fireworks shot! very crisp and sharp and you pressed the shutter just at the right time to allow the long exposure to bring out the trails...

26 Jul 2008 5:34am

@DarkElf: Thank you, but (maybe I shouldn't say that) I'm showing you ONE picture and took maybe 200 during the half hour the show lasted. Anyhow, it's always like that with fireworks. Very poor ratio of good VS bad shoot. I'd say one very good shot every 50 to 80. At least, I'm not shooting film anymore (I used to shoot slide film for that matter). Expensive, you say?

Fantastic image!!!
I do have a question though. You said that you get approximately 200 shots off in a 30 minute show. I am curious how you go about getting that many shots off. I recently shot a fireworks show and only got about 30 or 40 shots and the show was 20 minutes long. This was my first fireworks show and I was a little disappointed because I didn't get very many good shots. I was shooting using a Canon EOS 400D in RAW in Bulb mode using an average of about 15 seconds for each shot. Do you have any tips on how to get more shots off? Would you suggest shooting in JPEG instead of RAW?

As for your questions, I'll try to answer at my best. I arrive to the site a bit early, maybe 40 minutes before the show, so I can set my things, not in a hurry. I frame roughly at first, even before the show. Review all your settings, as follow:

- Fully loaded batteries
- Clean glass (I suggest buying a lenspens. Cheap, works great, better than fluid)
- Zoom lens. No time to change during the show.
- Format memory card. You need all space you have. Other cards on hands, pre-formated!
- ISO (base ISO for your camera, typically 200 on Nikon DSLR's, maybe 100 on Canon?)
- Manuel exposure, meaning :
. . > apperture, depending on ISO! [100 = f/8 to f/11] [200 = f/11 to f/16]. You may need to play with that!
. . > shutter, set to Bulb
- White balance, set to Daylight (Why? It worked so well with colour slide film that was 5600k anyway!)
- Manual focus, set to infinity. You don't want your autofocus starting to hunt between shots!
- RAW quality (especially important, I would say!) More on that later.*

Now, if your camera has the ability to plug-in a remote for tripping shutter, use it! You can find cheap deals on eBay if your branded ones are crazily expensive (it's the case with Nikon's!). You'll avoid camera shake, especially so because you're using Bulb, so you press a long time and you will induce shake.

Needless to say, a very sturdy tripod and head is required. Don't be shy to invest in a good tripod. I'd refer you to Thom Hogan for a great article about that, just here http://www.bythom.com/support.htm

Now, once the show begins... I take a look into the viewfinder to refine my framing a bit, but just don't overdo it! Give a little slack on the edge, but not too much else you loose resolution afterwards. You can always crop the excess later. And that's where the miracle happens. You still with me? Leave your frame alone, and just take pictures over, and over, and over again. Fill-up your memory cards.

There's ALWAYS a moment when the action gets down a bit, so a VERY QUICK look on LCD display to insure the exposure is about right. You might need ot fiddle a bit about your Aperture, but do stay in typical range. Don't overdo, once again.

Now, you'll ask me "How long do you expose?" Depends. You need to anticipate a bit, and imagine a lot. I try to trip the shutter when they launch the bombs, just before the bombs actually explode. You'll get that feeling pretty fast. Let the exposure go on for a typical 4 to 8 seconds, but mainly looking directly at the fireworks, NOT in the viewfinder. I turns black during the exposure anyway, so it's helpless! I'm sure you can figure out approximatly where your frame extends. You cleared that at the begining of the show, have you? Great.

So you look at the sky, trip the shutter just before explosion, stay on it until your mind tells you "enough". That's where your imagination comes to play. You can recreate (partially) the trails in your head. Of course, you can always count too, it helps. But don't rely on time alone. Use that artistical part of your brain! Just when you let go the shutter, immedialty press it again. This is sometimes where you get a nice shot (well, actually, it's rare, but try it anyway). And repeat. So can I get more than 200 shots in 30 minutes, you think? Of course I can. "Is my camera will care for a break?" Nope.

Have realistic expectations, and be critical of what you got. I usually get a maximum of 5 very good shot for a 30 minutes show, but usually I get 1, 2 or 3. There's quite a bit of luck involved, of course. And the big finale is not where I typically get good shots, for it's often too crowded for a clear capture. Finale might be great to the eyes, but not on the picture (well, in my experience). Remember to stop the Aperture down for the finale, you never know! Shorter times are also expected for that. If you're disapointed at your shots, remeber you enjoyed a great live show, and also try to learn from what's wrong. If you don't know what went wrong, try to show your pictures and ask for advise. But more important, persevere and try again. That's what every discipline is about, in the end.

Hope it helps. Have fun! For more specific questions, send me a email and I'll try to address it with best of my knowledge. / Vincent /

*Ok, a word about RAW vs. JPEG. Since the light itself is not going to be mesured, you need every last bit of information your camera can produce. JPEG is limited to 8 bit, while RAW is usually 12 bit. It will give you a bit of play to recover lost highlights or push a somewhat dark frame up a little. I always shot RAW, regardless of what I shoot, because I'm not going to be stuck with a forgotten camera JPEG setting.